SEBI Registered Stock Advisory Companies in India: Registration, Rules and Verification

The registration categories a stock advisory can hold

“Stock advisory company” is a marketing phrase, not a regulatory one. In Indian securities regulation there is no licence called “stock advisory”. What exists are specific registration categories, each permitting a specific activity:

A company describing itself as a “stock advisory” could hold any of these, or a combination — or none. The first question to answer about any such firm is not what it calls itself, but which of these rows it actually occupies.

Individual vs corporate registration

Both individuals and body corporates can register as Research Analysts or Investment Advisers, and the requirements differ in ways that matter to you as a client.

What corporate registration typically involves

• Net worth requirements. Body corporates face higher prescribed net worth or capital adequacy than individual registrants. The amounts are set by regulation and have been revised over time.
• A qualified principal officer, with prescribed qualifications, experience and NISM certification.
• Certification for every person giving research or advice. Not just the founder — anyone in a client-facing research or advisory role must hold the relevant NISM certification.
• Compliance infrastructure. A designated compliance officer, documented internal policies, record retention, and an annual compliance audit.
• Segregation requirements where the firm carries on other activities, so that research or advice is insulated from conflicting commercial interests.

None of this makes a corporate registrant automatically better than an individual one. A single registered analyst with a documented process and honest disclosure is worth more than a company with an org chart and a filtered track record. But corporate registration does mean more people are formally accountable, and there is an audited compliance function rather than one person's judgment.

Who supervises registered firms

SEBI grants registration, but day-to-day administration and supervision is delegated to designated bodies:

• RAASB — the Research Analyst Administration and Supervisory Body, administered through BSE, handles ongoing administration and supervision of registered Research Analysts.
• BASL — BSE Administration & Supervision Limited, performs the equivalent function for registered Investment Advisers.

Among the practical consequences: advertisements by registered Research Analysts and Investment Advisers require prior approval under the applicable advertisement code, which also prohibits superlative claims, assured-return language, and misleading references to past performance. This is why a compliant registered firm will not describe itself as “India's best” or “No. 1” — not out of modesty, but because it is not permitted to.

The continuing obligations registration carries

Registration is not a one-time event. The obligations that continue — and that give you leverage as a client — include:

1. 01Disclosure of conflicts of interestIncluding any holding in, or compensation from, a security being written about.
2. 02Research report standardsBasis of recommendation, risks, and prescribed disclosures accompanying published research.
3. 03Record maintenanceResearch, rationale, communications and client records retained for prescribed periods.
4. 04Annual compliance auditAn independent check that the firm is doing what the regulations require.
5. 05Investor Charter displayA published statement of services, timelines and investor rights.
6. 06Complaint data disclosurePeriodic publication of complaints received, resolved and pending.
7. 07Advertisement compliancePrior approval and adherence to the advertisement code for registered intermediaries.
8. 08Fee conductFees within permitted modes and limits, collected from the client's own account, never as a share of profits.

Verifying a firm in under two minutes

• Find the registration number. It should be on the website footer, in the Investor Charter, on invoices and in any client agreement. A firm that will not put it in writing has answered your question.
• Search sebi.gov.in. Use SEBI's list of registered intermediaries. Match the number to the exact legal entity name — not a brand name, the registered name.
• Check the status is active. Registrations lapse, get surrendered, suspended or cancelled.
• Match the category to what is being sold. An INH registrant offering personalised portfolio advice, or promising to manage your positions, is outside its permitted activity.
• Confirm the payee. Fees are paid to the registered entity's bank account. Not to a director personally, not to a payment wallet, not to a “collections partner”.
• Look for the Investor Charter and complaints disclosure. Both should be reachable from the site without asking.

How “SEBI registered” gets misused

Several patterns recur often enough to be worth naming:

• Borrowed numbers. An unregistered operator displays a genuine registration number belonging to someone else. Verification catches this instantly, because the entity name will not match.
• Lapsed registration. The number was real and is now inactive. The certificate image on the site is years old.
• Category mismatch. A Research Analyst registration used to legitimise personalised advisory or account-handling services that the registration does not cover.
• Registered entity, unregistered channel. The company is registered, but the actual service is delivered through a personal Telegram or WhatsApp channel that operates outside every compliance control the registration implies — no disclosure, no records, payments to a personal account.
• “Associated with a SEBI registered firm.” This phrase means nothing. Either the entity taking your money is registered or it is not.

The grievance and dispute machinery

The value of dealing with a registered firm is most visible when a relationship goes wrong:

• Direct complaint to the intermediary, in writing, through its published grievance channel, with a defined response timeline stated in its Investor Charter.
• SEBI SCORES — the centralised complaint redressal platform for registered intermediaries, with tracking and escalation.
• Online Dispute Resolution — SEBI's ODR framework provides conciliation and arbitration through an online portal for disputes not resolved directly.
• Supervisory body — RAASB or BASL, for conduct and compliance issues.

Against an unregistered operator, this entire structure is unavailable. That, rather than the quality of any particular recommendation, is the substantive difference registration makes.

EqtPulse's registration and what it covers

EqtPulse (Equity Pulse) is registered with SEBI as a Research Analyst, Reg. No. INH000028565. Under that registration we publish structured quantitative research across equity, index derivatives and MCX commodities.

Stated as plainly as we can: we publish research. We do not provide personalised investment advice, we do not carry out individual risk profiling, we do not manage portfolios, we do not hold client funds, and we do not accept a share of anyone's profits. Where a question calls for personalised advice, the correct professional is a SEBI Registered Investment Adviser.

Frequently asked questions

Related reading